Brazil Summit 2019

Brazil Summit 2019

Overview

Brazil ’s markets have surged after Jair Bolsonaro’s victory. With the 2019 new presidency and as Congress aims to pass key reforms, all eyes are on the world’s eighth largest economy. Local investors now seem confident that improvement is underway, despite the current grim scenario. After a grinding recession, the longest in Brazil ’s history, recovery has been slow to materialise. But markets seem unperturbed. Some of the optimism is based on a conviction that after such a long slump, a rebound cannot be far away.

The country requires not just deft fiscal management and continued anti-corruption efforts, but also a solid strategy to be more competitive in today’s choppy world. Will economic pragmatism triumph over the new government’s ideological crusades? Where does Brazil stand in contrast to other Latin America key economies, which also just had presidential elections against a background of sluggish economic growth and anger over crime and graft? How will the international community respond to another populist, far-right leader? How can the region foster and improve entrepreneurial-ism and innovation in the coming decades? What are the promises for the largest start-up ecosystem in the region? How can cutting-edge technologies help solve Brazil’s most pressing issues?

Why attend

Join The Economist’s editors and more than 200 government and business leaders to evaluate Brazil’s progress and to discuss the country’s social, political and economic future in the year and the decade ahead.

Agenda

Opening remarks

9:00 AM

The economic outlook

Understand what investors should watch for. When will the country’s future arrive? How will current global macroeconomic trends impact the economic forecast for Brazil moving forward? What impact does this have on how Brazilian business leaders think about risk? When and how will Brazilian businesses reclaim their place under the sun?

9:00 AM

Morning networking break

9:45 AM

The World If…

We will look at how possible events could shape the near future of Brazil if they were to actually happen. The discussion will examine high-impact scenarios and the question for panellists is not, “Will this happen?” but, “What would be the consequences if it did?” What are the plausible developments one should be prepared for if Donald Trump doesn’t win the next US elections and Bolsonaro loses foreign support? What if there is new world financial crisis, how would Brazil hold up? What if the pension reform doesn’t pass in the first semester of 2019? What if deforestation in the Amazon reaches a tipping point hastening the collapse of regional climate systems important for agriculture? What would be the international impact?

10:30 AM

Turning tides

Latin America’s future

Four out of the top five economies in the region recently elected a new president. How should business leaders prepare for opportunity and act with confidence when making strategic decisions? We will gather the best analytical minds to examine markets, countries and industries.

11:30 AM

Great expectations

Over the last eight years, Rio de Janeiro has gone from one oil discovery to the next and hosting global sporting events to become a dangerous city in need of federal government bailouts and National Guard protection. How can algorithms help fight wanton violence? The rate of deforestation in the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest, leaped 50 percent from August through October 2018 according to Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research. Would machine- learning applications be able to map and curb the damage? In this panel, world-leading AI thinkers will discuss how to solve Brazil’s most pressing issues with cutting-edge technology.

12:15 PM

Trump of the tropics

Jair Bolsonaro is the latest in a long line of populists who have ridden a wave of discontent, frustration and desperation to the highest office in each of their countries. The new president will be leading a country that has completely and utterly imploded from its heydays in the mid-2000s. What kind of commander does the nation need and what leader will it ultimately have? Is he going to have the political support needed to get bills passed? Will the advertised open markets liberal agenda turn into an ideological one? Where will the new president’s hard-line conservatism and maverick stances take the country?

12:35 PM

View from the top

Beyond the hype

Hear from chief executives that led companies that have remained attractive and thriving during hard times.

1:15 PM

Lunch

2:15 PM

Less gold for the old

Brazil is a land of youthful and prosperous pensioners. Its citizens collect pensions when they are 58 on average; Mexicans toil into their 70s. Brazilians on average incomes get pensions worth four-fifths of their pre-retirement earnings, which is generous by most countries’ standards. Widows and widowers inherit the full pensions of their deceased spouses, which they can combine with their own. This accumulation of rights has become an economic cluster bomb. Inflated by big increases in the minimum wage, pensions now account for more than half of the government’s non-interest spending. How can Brazil’s pension burden be reduced and how can it be done fast?

3:00 PM

Leading by example

Prosecutors and judges are combating corruption within the framework of the law, exercising political maturity and acting above party influences. Can all this result in enhanced compliance practices and improved relations with investors who place their bets on Brazil? Will the movement to fight corruption in Brazil turn into a model for both emerging and developed economies?

3:00 PM

Highway to China

Chinese foreign direct investment in Latin America and the Caribbean has skyrocketed over the last ten years, according to a 2018 report by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. China dropped close to $90 billion in the region between 2005 and 2016. China is already Brazil’s leading trading partner. Seeing opportunity in the sweeping privatization programs announced, Chinese state-owned companies, led by State Grid and China Three Gorges, are seeking to expand their assets in the country and Brazil could use a cash injection. But could the budding relationship with China be at risk? The Trump administration is hopeful that Brazil ’s right-leaning presidency will emerge as a powerful ally against China. Will Brazil bet on a stronger relationship with the US?

3:45 PM

Afternoon networking break

4:15 PM

Fintech on the rise

Chinese foreign direct investment in Latin America and the Caribbean has skyrocketed over the last ten years, according to a 2018 report by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. China dropped close to $90 billion in the region between 2005 and 2016. China is already Brazil’s leading trading partner. Seeing opportunity in the sweeping privatization programs announced, Chinese state-owned companies, led by State Grid and China Three Gorges, are seeking to expand their assets in the country and Brazil could use a cash injection. But could the budding relationship with China be at risk? The Trump administration is hopeful that Brazil ’s right-leaning presidency will emerge as a powerful ally against China. Will Brazil bet on a stronger relationship with the US?

4:15 PM

Voices from the future

Economist Events will identify 4-5 of Brazil young leaders who will shape the country's economic future in the next 25 years. These are individuals who are already planting the seeds to catalyze change in the technology sector.

Speaking opportunities

Sponsorship opportunities

Download Brochure

The Economist Events is a part of the Economist Group. We would love to keep you informed about other Economist events, newly-released content, our best subscription offers, and great new product offerings from The Economist Group.

I wish to be contacted by email.

I also wish to sign up to the EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) Perspectives newsletter.

The Economist Group is a global organisation and operates a strict privacy policy around the world. Please see our privacy policy here

Attending Request

By submitting this form we will send you updates associated with this event.

The Economist Events is a part of the Economist Group. We would love to keep you informed about other Economist events, newly-released content, our best subscription offers, and great new product offerings from The Economist Group.

I wish to be contacted by email.

I also wish to sign up to the EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) Perspectives newsletter.

The Economist Group is a global organisation and operates a strict privacy policy around the world. Please see our privacy policy here

Media partnership and press Request

By submitting this form we will send you updates associated with this event.

The Economist Events is a part of the Economist Group. We would love to keep you informed about other Economist events, newly-released content, our best subscription offers, and great new product offerings from The Economist Group.

I wish to be contacted by email.

I also wish to sign up to the EIU (Economist Intelligence Unit) Perspectives newsletter.

The Economist Group is a global organisation and operates a strict privacy policy around the world. Please see our privacy policy here